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Sacrifice

 

  I recently began rereading the book of Leviticus which is near the beginning of the Old Testament in the Bible.  Leviticus has 27 chapters, and is filled with a variety of different types of texts.  There are laws, rules and regulations for various religious practices, and other things as well.  When reading chapter 1 we are faced with the stark reality of animal sacrifice which God's people, Israel, practiced with the belief that every animal sacrificed paid for sins committed.
  While our modern sensitivities may be offended by the idea of animal sacrifice, we continue, even today, to honor the idea and practice of sacrifice.  When we see professional athletes who have worked extremely hard to get to the highest level of competition in their sport, we recognize sacrifice.  When we see leaders in the business world who have achieved great things through a company they have started, we recognize sacrifice.  When we see artists and scientists and entrepreneurs and others who have made something, discovered something, created something, we recognize sacrifice. 
  Sacrifice is simply the practice of giving one thing up in order to get something that we deem greater than what we already have.   For the people of ancient Israel, the animal was a small price to pay for right relationship with God.  For any of the other examples I mentioned (leaders, artists, etc.) their time, commitment, practice and hard work was the price they paid to achieve.
  The question we ought to ask ourselves is: 'what is the most important thing to me?'  And if we can answer that question, the next one is: 'what am I willing to sacrifice to get that thing?'
  Well, it should come as no surprise that having started this post with the Bible, I would round out this reflection with the Bible as well.  According to the New Testament God sacrificed himself in order to pay the debt which humanity could not pay.  That means that God believed wholeheartedly that humanity was worth saving, it was God's highest good above simply enjoying himself, or starting over.  God decided that the most important thing was redeeming what He made so that He could reunite with us in relationship. 
  God prioritized you and me.  God loves you and me.  God sacrificed himself for you and me.
  That is how much God values you and me.
  In the life and death and resurrection of Jesus I recognize sacrifice. 
  And in the life and death and resurrection of Jesus I recognize both the cause and the fruit of sacrifice - love.  Thank you Jesus.  Thank you for your love.

Discouragement

  All of us feel discouraged along the way in life, and there are a variety of reasons we may experience discouragement.  Regardless of the circumstances and reasons why we may experience this, we all have a choice as to how we will respond when it happens.
  I don't believe pulling ourselves up by the bootstraps is the healthiest response and I don't believe in resigning to the discouragement either.  I think a tempered and authentic response with wisdom, patience and prayer is the best approach.  We need encouragement in the face of discouragement, and there's no greater encourager than Jesus Christ.
  There are many times in life when we need encouragement, that is, someone else to pour courage into us.  We need someone to help lift our spirits and lead us up and out of discouragement.
  This is why we need community.
  We need people to speak into our lives and to bring words that build up rather than tear down.
  And other people need us to be the ones who speak into their lives.
  It may very well be that the path out of our own discouragement begins with seeing someone else in our sphere of influence who is discouraged, and who we can encourage.  Look for the discouraged around you today, and let the encouragement flow.

Science and Theology

  I love science and I love theology.  I am a science nerd and a theology geek, and I wear these badges with pride!  I love science because I am deeply curious about how the world works.  I love theology because I love God and I have a faith that seeks to understand.

  Unfortunately, we live in a culture and a time when science and theology are portrayed as being at odds with one another.  There are a great deal of people who seem to think these two are enemies.

  My conviction is that truth is only found when we are relentlessly honest about our pursuit of it.  This means that along the journey of learning we will inevitably find ourselves asking some pretty hefty questions- and that is okay.  

  Science, as an avenue of exploration and discovery is certainly not without it's moral and ethical implications.  That is an important conversation point to have in our culture.  However, theology also has important moral and ethical implications, and thus we need to allow space and time to have these important discussions.

  More to the point, I believe the degree to which followers of Jesus disregard science and genuine curiosity they actually do harm to their faith, not to mention the faith of others.  If we believe God, revealed in Christ, is truly the source of all truth, then we will not be afraid of questions, we will not be afraid of inquiry and curiosity, and we will certainly not be afraid of science as it seeks to explain the workings of the natural world around us.

  A truly robust and healthy spirituality will involve lots of questions, deep reflection and genuine curiosity.  Christian faith has, for over 2000 years, produced some of the world's greatest scientific minds.  There are numerous examples of passionate scientists who followed Jesus and endeavored to explore and understand the natural world.

  As for me, a follower of Jesus, a pastor, a father of two inquisitive and curious children, and as a lover of all things science, I am going to continue to explore, think, question, inquire and learn until the day I die.  For as my dad used to tell me, "Once you stop learning, you stop growing." Observe, Examine, Experiment and Repeat.  And while you do so, think about how the things you are learning reveal the designer and maker behind it all.